סִפּוּרִים נִפְלָאִים מֵרַבֵּנוּ זַ"ל

The Conduct of Admoyr z"tl with the Aristocrats of Uman When our master z"l traveled from Zlatipolia to Breslov via Uman — for such was the road — he stopped over in Uman for Shabbos. And that was when the story occurred that he passed by the old cemetery and said: "Here it is good to be buried" — Do iz gut tsu ligyn. At that time there were in Uman three very great heretics [ epikorsim ]: one whose name was Chayikil — and his two sons-in-law: one named Hirsh Ber — who was the greatest heretic of his day — literally the brazen face of the serpent itself — and the second named Landa, who was a doctor in Uman — also a great heretic but not like Hirsh Ber. And they were men of standing and close to the government. They had received a golden sword as a gift from the Czar — for they were men of great wisdom — renowned throughout all the land of Russia — and in other countries as well — literally across the whole world. And their practice was: whenever a famous Tzadik came to Uman — they would go to him to mock him — and if he was truly wise — to converse with him. And once, when the holy Tzadik of Berdichev wished to serve as rabbi in Uman — they did not permit it. And similarly the rabbi of Shipitovka etc. And as we wrote — our master stayed there for Shabbos. Chayikil said: I will go to test his mettle — and you sleep. And if there is someone worth speaking with — you will go too. And Chayikil came to our master's house. And our master z"l asked him: "What do you wish?" — Vos vil a Yehud? [What does a Jew want?] He answered: I heard that a great man has come — and I came to welcome him. Our master z"l answered: Is there not a great man across the way from me? [For across from the house where our master z"l was lodging — a general officer was also lodging.] Why do you not go to welcome him? And this was like a slap in the face — and he fell silent. And afterwards he returned home. He answered and said to them: Although I spoke only a few words with him and he gave me a slight humiliation — nevertheless I see there is someone worth speaking with. Therefore sleep a bit and go — it should be during the middle of his meal. And so it was — and they came in the middle of the meal — and our master z"l was then saying a Torah discourse. And when they entered — he stopped and with his wisdom steered from that Torah discourse to some deep calculation [apparently from the Gemara in Sukkah: "Every amah in a square — an amah and a fraction etc." — and Rashi comments: he is not exact]. And they, when they heard this, said to one another: Dos meynt er nit zayne Chassidim — dos meynt er unz. [By this he does not mean his Chassidim — by this he means us.] And they delved deeply into the calculation but could not arrive at it. And they said to him: since you know the calculation — tell it to us. And he told them. And it greatly pleased them — and they considered him a great wise man. And they asked him to remain in Uman. And he told them: when they would send him the book Yayin Levanon etc. And he traveled to Breslov and was there eight years. And on the Shabbos night of the great fire — our master z"l said: Shoyn, shoyn [Already, already] — as brought in the Yamay Moharan"as . And one day a special messenger came from them with the book mentioned above — and requesting that he come to Uman. And so it was — as brought there in the Yamay Moharan"as . And these heretics mentioned above had made among themselves a pact with an oath — already years before — not to mention the name of Hashem. That is — not to allow any doubt at all into their minds as to whether there is a G-d, heaven forbid — for the way of those who investigate and pursue philosophical thoughts is that once they conclude in their minds that this is the truth — afterwards comes to them a thought that contradicts all the previous ones — that the truth is precisely the opposite. And they had investigated for many years etc. Therefore they decided with an oath as mentioned — not to allow any other thought into their minds. And also in speech they would not speak — for they said that a word spoken regularly by a person is a necessity of existence. Therefore they agreed not to speak of Hashem etc. And when they came to our master z"l and were with him some hours — each time the name of Hashem would come to their mouths — and they said as they had agreed etc. And when they came to our master z"l: Rayst men mikh bay di palis — Hirsh Ber — es iz do a Got oyf der velt! [They pull me by the corners of my garment — Hirsh Ber — there IS a G-d in the world!] And our master z"l was careful not to say Torah before them — and when they came in the middle he would steer toward another matter. And to R. Naftali he said: he should speak only with Landa — and with Hirsh Ber not at all. And to R. Nussun z"l he said: he should speak with Hirsh Ber. And once our master z"l told him to tell them a story from the Baal Shem Tov z"l. And Moharan"as z"l was surprised in his heart — had he not heard from our master z"l to be careful not to say Torah before them? Our master z"l answered: "What did I say?" — Vos hob ikh gezugt? — "Sapru vagoyim es kvodo." [What did I say? — "Tell among the nations His glory."] And at the beginning of our master's z"l coming to Uman — they considered him wise but not like their teacher "Vizel." Afterwards they considered him wise as he. And afterwards — when they came to know he was wiser than he. And they had a question from their teacher mentioned above — and had no answer. And they went regarding this to our master z"l to ask him. And immediately when they entered his house — our master z"l posed this very question and answered them with a correct answer. And they were very astonished — and kissed the feet of our master z"l and said to him: "Fair enough — we know you are wiser than Vizel — for he had no answer and you have an answer — but how did you know our thought?" He answered and explained to them that this is from wisdom — for whoever has a clean and clear mind can recognize the thought through the hairs. And they accepted this. But afterwards when they left him they were still more astonished and said: "Us! Such wise men as we — he could mislead so greatly — surely this is impossible by human intellect in any manner etc." And once our master z"l came to them and they had a book in the Greek language — and our master z"l asked them: What is this? And they answered him dismissively: this is not for you. So it was several times that he asked them and they answered as mentioned. And he took it in his hand and grasped some pages of the book — and told them by heart what was written there — also the page and the line. And they were very astonished. In sum — they became deeply attached to him — and his love entered their hearts greatly from the immensity of his wisdom z"l. And they were accustomed to enter to him — and he was held in very great esteem in their eyes. And once they spoke of Mashiach — they answered and said: "We want you to be Mashiach." And once they said to him: "If the old Emperor were still alive — he would take the royal crown from his own head and crown you because of your awesome wisdom. But what can we do — this king is a fool etc." Once they played chess at our master's z"l — and the way of chess is that during the game one forgets the awe of honor — and they became quite informal. And they did not have such great awe of him z"l. And in the middle — R. Nussun and R. Naftali entered the house with awe and reverence as was customary. And when they [the heretics] saw this — they became deflated. Our master z"l answered and said to them: You are not my army. And he told them a story: that once a king took his friend to a private room and played chess with him — and the way etc. as mentioned — and the king forgot he was a king. And likewise the friend forgot he was playing with the king — and they played like two simple men — sometimes the king won and sometimes the friend won etc. — and the awe was somewhat forgotten. And at this time certain ministers of the realm were needed by the king — and they entered with awe and reverence as was customary. And the friend began to look at himself: Is he not playing with the king? And he did not play well — since he did not want to beat the king. And the king said to him: what is this? This is not your business — Mit zey fir ikh lender, un mit dir shpil ikh Shach. [With them I rule countries — and with you I play chess.] And similarly our master z"l pointed with his hands toward Moharan"as and R. Naftali z"l and said: "With them I rule countries — and with you I play chess." In sum — there is much to tell — and many sheets would not suffice to tell what he engaged with them etc. And the end was: on the last Rosh HaShanah in Uman — the year 5571 [1810] — they prayed together in the gathering of our master z"l. And Hirsh Ber's maidservant came to call him to go drink coffee etc. He answered her: "Not this — that is: before the blowing of the shofar I am not going to drink." And he also began letting a small beard grow. And also Moharan"as z"l reviewed the Torah section 8 of Likutay Tinyono — "Tik'u" — together with Hirsh Ber mentioned above — for it was crowded in the house. And Moharan"as had only his ears turned toward our master z"l — while the rest of his body had the crush of people pressing against it. But Hirsh Ber was not pushed — for they feared him because of his closeness to the government etc. Therefore he heard the Torah well etc. And after the passing of our master z"l — Moharan"as wept and lamented greatly as is known. They answered and said to him: Aykh felt der Rebbe? Unz felt der Rebbe! Ven der Rebbe zol lebn, voltn mir gevorn baalei teshuvah un tzadikim gemurim! [You miss the Rebbe? We miss the Rebbe! If the Rebbe had lived — we would have become complete masters of repentance and complete Tzadikim!] And another story: after the passing of our master z"l — there were differences of opinion as to where to lay our master z"l to rest. For the Chevra Kadisha [burial society] did not wish to place our master z"l except in the new cemetery — since in the old one they had not placed anyone for a long time. And our fellowship from Teplyk specifically wanted to take our master z"l to Teplyk. And our fellowship from Tirhavitze wanted to take him to Tirhavitze. And only R. Nussun was the one who cried out that he knew our master z"l had specifically wished to rest in that old cemetery. And it is understood that R. Nussun was becoming uncertain — since he was only one. But immediately Hirsh Ber came to Moharan"as and asked him: if you know that the wish of our master z"l was to rest in the old cemetery — then wait a bit and complete your intentions. And he went immediately to the ispravnik [government official] and obtained a permit for two graves — therefore they were still able to make a small structure. [And for this structure — the second wife of our master z"l — who had no connection to him at all — said regarding him: "I would tell of your glory but have not seen you — I would liken you, name you — but have not known you" — roused herself that it be built with her money. And so it was. And the Rav R. Avrohom hinted regarding this: "His house — this is his wife."] And after the passing of our master z"l — they were dear beloved friends to our fellowship — and especially to Moharan"as z"l. And Moharan"as z"l had a command from our master z"l to speak with them. Therefore every time he was in Uman he would pay them a visit and speak with them. And once he entered into such great philosophical investigations with them that he cried out and said: "What did our master z"l want of him?" And also once there was one with our master z"l — and our master z"l asked him: "With what do you strengthen yourself in your fallen state from the service of Hashem?" He answered: with a page of Gemara. Our master z"l answered him: "I live in a great city and there are great heretics there — and I sustain myself with: 'Blessed is He who created us for His glory and separated us from those who err' etc." And some say this is one of the reasons [another version: the reason he traveled] that our master z"l chose Uman — in order to lift up R. Nussun and R. Naftali — whose hearts were very broken — and here, when they would see such heretics as these — they would sustain themselves that they are believers in Hashem etc. And once Moharan"as came to them and they asked him a deep calculation — which a certain great wise priest had labored over for many years. He asked them to give him a private room — and he stayed there approximately an hour and a half — standing with one foot on the bench and the other on the floor — closing his eyes and deepening his mind — and he told them the answer. And they related how this priest labored for many years — and when he arrived at the answer he made a holiday and a feast. And Moharan"as z"l took this calculation and added to it some number — and told them that now — even if he would labor for many years — he would not arrive at it. And these heretics mentioned above — Moharan"as z"l was held in very great esteem among them — for they saw his righteousness and uprightness and his total devotion with all heart and soul to our master z"l. And this was very pleasing in their eyes. And at the time of the great persecution against him — Hirsh Ber said to Moharan"as z"l: "If you agree — I will write a petition to the Emperor himself — and within twenty-four hours not a trace of the opponents will remain." And Moharan"as z"l answered him: "First — I do not wish G-d forbid that the opposition grow stronger. And second — I do not wish that they should be the persecuted and I the persecutor. I have no other counsel but prayer." And once Hirsh Ber spoke with Moharan"as z"l about the existence of the Divine Being. He answered and said to him: Vos redstu mit mir fun Got? Ikh zog dir: "Va'ere es Hashem" — ikh hob gezeen Got! [What are you speaking to me about G-d? I tell you: "And I saw Hashem" — I have seen G-d!] And he believed him. Once when Landa came from Berdichev he brought many gifts to his house etc. — and immediately when he heard that Moharan"as z"l was in Uman — before going home he went to him. And Moharan"as z"l spoke with them of the ultimate purpose — that this world is nothing etc. — and the world is full of sorrows etc. And it was a wonder in their minds — for they thought: I have just come from Berdichev and I have all good things etc. He answered and said: "A person can come from Berdichev with many gifts — and bring his wife a golden ring — and it may not please her — and a quarrel will ensue until he wishes death better than life." And so it was immediately with Landa — that he went home and gave his wife the golden ring — and it did not please her — and a quarrel ensued — until literally death was better than life for him. And he went immediately to Moharan"as z"l and said: Oy, hot ihr gut tsugetrofn! [Oy — you guessed exactly right!] And at the time of the persecution against Moharan"as z"l — they gave him strengthening not to become downhearted. And they told him a story that once happened in the world: a doctor had a student-assistant. And as time went on — the masses began to make much of the assistant more than the doctor — until he became famous in the world and more honored. And once the king made a banquet — and everyone sat according to their honor. And the student-assistant sat first and afterwards the doctor. The doctor answered and said to the assistant: Du veyst dokh yo dem khiluk fun mir biz dir. [You know well the difference between me and you.] He answered him: "Do not be downhearted — do not lose heart — for such is the way of the world in every generation: ninety-eight percent do not know from the truth — and two percent know. And so too with Moharan"as z"l." And after the passing of Moharan"as z"l — Hirsh Ber traveled to America — and was writing letters of friendship to R. Nachman of Tulchin z"l. And when he passed away there — his sons wrote to R. Nachman mentioned above at length about his passing — and that he passed away in repentance — and his mouth never ceased saying: Oy der Rebbe, oy der Rebbe! [Oy — the Rebbe! Oy — the Rebbe!] Once on Erev Shabbos — as our master z"l was traveling to Breslov and the day was still long — he said to his men: "I think that when we come to Breslov — it will be after the bathhouse" — nokh dem bod — and so it was — that when they came to Breslov — the bathhouse had burned down that day. Regarding the evil eye [ ayin hora ] spoken of in the conversations: the attendant complained before him z"l that he asked a certain man to give him one horse from his two horses — and he would not. Our master z"l said to him: "If so — he has only one horse." He requested the calf — and our master z"l said: "If so — he has no calf." When the attendant returned to that man — he found that one horse had died and only one remained — and the calf had also died. Moshe Hinkes related that once early in the morning when he went to the mikveh and the way passed by the house of our master z"l — he attempted to peer into our master's z"l house through the cracks in the shutters to see what our master z"l was doing. And he saw our master z"l from behind — his face to the wall. At noon he was again with our master z"l — and suddenly our master z"l told him that one must seal and plaster the cracks — for the sight through one crack — eyn kuk fun ashpering iz mikh oykh mevalbel — gam ken mevalbel osi [one glance through a crack disturbs me too — it also disturbs me] Once a man and woman came to our master z"l requesting that he pray for them regarding children. Our master z"l said to them in this language: Ihr vet ba mir gehalfen vern tsvishn tog un nakht [You will be helped by me between day and night] And this man lived in a village near Uman. And once after the passing of our master z"l — the man and his wife came to Uman for the mitzvah of immersion. And when they left — it was twilight [between day and night]. And they went by way of the holy grave and prayed there with streaming tears. And they returned from there and traveled home — and that year they were blessed with a male son and named him Nachman after our master z"l. After time — when their son Nachman grew up — at that time the decree of military conscription went out upon the world. And this young man Nachman was also required to appear for the medical review. And when his time to appear came — he first went to the holy grave of our master z"l and wept there greatly. And when his father and mother came to him — he told them that he had dreamed: there came to him a young married man whose appearance was thus and thus [and they recognized this was the appearance of our master z"l] — and said to him: "Were you not named after me? — You shall not serve among them." And a miracle occurred — leprosy broke out on his body — and from this he was freed from military service. And after a short time he was healed and became healthy as before. A story of one who suddenly fell ill at night — and the relatives of the sick man came to our master z"l. And our master z"l began to put them off a bit — and they began to insist. Our master z"l said to them: "Bring me two hundred silver rubles — with every kind of coin." And they began to search for money — and it was presumably hard to find at night. And much time passed until they had found the money — but they found coins. And one coin of five rubles they searched for — until the sick man died, G-d have mercy. And then it became day. And then they found the five silver rubles in the pocket of the sick man himself. Once one of our fellowship [he was R. Tevye the grocer of Tirhavitze] came to our master z"l — and our master z"l spoke with him: that it is certainly better for a person to be poor, G-d forbid, than to die, G-d forbid. [For when the money is taken from the person — certainly it is better than when the person is taken from the money etc.] For when a person is alive — Hashem can give him all good etc. And the man agreed with our master z"l. And our master z"l concluded then: "Even Nachman Nussun would have been pleased to be poor rather than to lie under a clod of earth." And the man traveled home — and on the way he heard that his house and possessions had burned — and the souls had escaped. And he also heard that Nachman Nussun was traveling from Petersburg with a sack full of gold coins — and suddenly he became ill — and could not make it to the city in time — and perished on the road and was buried there, G-d have mercy — for he had already become greatly decomposed etc. And then the man saw the holy spirit of our master z"l. When R. Nussun z"l heard from our master z"l that it is good for each person to have a private room for hisbodedus and for all particulars of the service of Hashem — he began to yearn for this. And it occurred to him to build himself an upper room etc. — as it is also brought in the Book of Traits that to dwell in an upper story is good for the service of the Creator. But from the immensity of his poverty — he thought for a long time how long he would need to spend gathering money and building a structure. And he said in this language: Vifil Torah un tefilah ikh darf tsu lib dem onverin! [How much Torah and prayer would I need to lose for this!] Therefore for now he found a solution to make do — by making himself a partition in the room he lived in — fully enclosed. And in those four cubits he merited to compose the entire book of prayers that he left after him as a blessing. And in time he merited an upper room — some years before his passing z"tl. What is mentioned in the letters of Moharan"as regarding the necessity of strengthening oneself — and without it the danger is great — and the proof from the rabbi of Balfur etc. — this was the story: there was a rabbi — a Gaon — great in Torah and wisdom — and he was a righteous man. And because he lacked strengthening at the time of his falling — this caused him in the end to fall completely from Judaism, G-d have mercy. The story of Moharan"as in which was fulfilled regarding him "I will give a man in your place" — that it was decreed upon him etc. — and that night there fell upon a certain proper man named R. Nussun the pharmacist [see the letters of Moharan"as ] — and they killed him and all his household. And that night the shammes [beadle] at the cemetery heard a great noise from the grave of his [R. Nussun pharmacist's] father — and in the morning when he heard that his son R. Nussun had been killed — they understood that this was the noise: that he had wished to rescue him and was unable. And this had been decreed upon Moharan"as z"l — and was exchanged for that man — whose name was Nussun. Our master z"l said to R. Lippa: "Look at me" — Kuk mikh on — "And what I do not say to them [he pointed with his hand toward R. Nussun and R. Naftali z"l] — for they see me every time." And further he said: "You see me now — you will see me on Rosh HaShanah." He explicitly said that the study of his compositions is the beginning of the redemption — speedily in our days, Amen.

Further I found written in a volume that was with R. Naftali z"l:

a) "I will seek him in whatever place he is — like the court [Beis Din]." b) What the world is accustomed to doing for the evil eye — to spit toward it — is hinted in the words of our Sages z"l regarding Chananya Mishael and Azarya: where did they go? One said: they died from the evil eye. And one said: they were drowned in spittle. That is — the hint mentioned: that they feared the evil eye — and he spat toward them — and they died from the spit. c) He has a heavenly constellation [ma'arachah] — and this alone will be his downfall. d) He boasts in winter — for he defied the battle-arrays of the living G-d. But David was not afraid of him at all — and said that he had already had an encounter with seven — and he had grasped him by his beard. For the lion came etc. "and I grasped his beard" — he grasped him by the beard and struck and killed him — so shall it be. (Said the transcriber: He saw he has a battle-array. Until here these were said regarding the matter etc. that was related before him etc. — that there would be a strong winter.) These stories were written in the volume mentioned that was with R. Naftali: "The story of a small king who was conquered by a great king — as printed in the New Story-books."

A story of a pauper who would sit in the study house [Beis Medrash] and study Torah. Once an astrologer [called rosh bit — a stargazer] came to the city — and the whole city ran to him. But the pauper sat in the study house and did not go. His wife came to him inside the study house — and found no one there except her husband — for all had gone to the seer. And she screamed at him: "You destitute lazy mishap! Why do you not go to the astrologer?" He did not want to go — and she badgered him further — until he was forced to go. He came to the astrologer — and the astrologer told him that his mazal [fate, fortune, aptitude] was that he should be a thief. He returned to the study house to his learning — and his wife came and said to him: "What did he tell you?" He said to her: "He said to me: 'A beggar — remain a beggar.'" In the evening he came home and ate his main meal — namely a piece of bread. While eating he began to chuckle — and his wife asked him: "What are you laughing about? Certainly you know something and you do not want to tell me." He said to her: "No — he told me nothing — I am simply laughing." He ate more — and again a second time he began to laugh — and she asked as before and he answered as before. In the middle of all this he burst out laughing — and laughed so heartily he emitted an odor from his mouth. She said to him again: "See — certainly you know something." He told her: the astrologer had told him his mazal was to be a thief. She replied: she did not want him to be a thief — "and it is good for us to be poor however it may be as Hashem provides — and you shall not be a thief." Afterwards Shabbos arrived — presumably they had everything nice for Shabbos in proper order — that is, challah loaves of grain bread and the rest of the courses duly [though this appears somewhat ironic]. And they sat to eat — and he had presumably four or five daughters and they grabbed from each other a piece of bread — for even the aforementioned bread he did not have adequate sufficiency. His wife spoke up and said: "Master of the World! I am already very fed up with this poverty to the extent that I want you to be a thief — so that we do not suffer this scrimping." He was forced to fulfill her desire: Ya givalt un nit givalt — in fort gegangen. [He did want and/or he did not want — nevertheless he went.] — and so each time Rebbe Nachman used this expression. He went to steal — and settled upon going to the wealthiest man of the city. He went to steal — and found the guards sleeping — and no one challenged him whatsoever. He went to the store — and the lock was open — for such was his mazal. And he went to the register — and its lock was open as well. He took four or five rubles — just enough for his livelihood — and brought them to his wife and said: "See — I have fulfilled your desire — draw your expenses from this — for I will not continue to steal again." She answered: certainly she also did not desire this — only she was compelled by the dire straits. Afterwards once she began screaming at him again: "Beggar-mishap — you were in the store — why did you not take enough for me a yoopa [a long unlined silk robe worn for formal occasions]?" And he was forced to go steal again. He went to the store and found a thief standing there — and asked him: "Who are you?" And he replied: "I am a thief." And so the other asked him — and he answered likewise that he is a thief. The pauper said to him: "Let us become partners in robberies — I have the mazal for this." And he agreed. The pauper said in his mind: if we steal here we will make the owner of the house a pauper — for I by myself would steal just what I need for a yoopa. But now he will steal a great deal and the owner will be left with nothing. So he said to the thief: "Why should we bring loss to a Jew — better that we go steal from a gentile." And he agreed — and they decided to go steal from the king [who lived in this city] — for certainly he could steal there — for that was his mazal. The thief said: "It would be good for us to steal the king's set of coronation clothing — and certainly it will be enough for us for generations upon generations — for I know where they are placed." The pauper agreed — for certainly he could steal them — for that was his mazal. And they went there — went through room after room — and found the clothing. And the pockets of the clothing were very valuable — and they took them. Afterwards they began to quarrel between them — because one garment was large and one was small. The thief said he was entitled to the large one because he had the intelligence about them. And the pauper said he was entitled to the large one because he was the one with the mazal — and with his mazal they stole them. The pauper said: "I will go ask the king." The thief said: "How is that possible?" He said: "Nevertheless — I will go ask him." The thief said: "If you could do this — that you go and ask the king — then I myself will give you the large garment." He went with him to the king — and lying near the king was one who told stories to the king so that he would sleep. So they came — and both grasped the king's bed where he was sleeping — and carried the bed with the king to another room. In the interim the king woke up and thought he was in his usual place. And the thief began to tell him the story as above — of the two thieves — and asked the king: "Who is entitled to the large garment?" The king was outraged: "What are you asking me? Certainly the pauper is entitled — because they were stolen with his mazal! It would be good for you to tell me a story." And he told him a story — and the king slept. They stood and carried the bed back and returned it to the first room. In the morning it became known that the king's coronation clothing had been stolen. The king remembered that the one who lay by him had told him the aforementioned story and asked him who was entitled to the large garment — and he realized he must know from the robbery. So they beat him — and he said he did not know — and they beat him profusely and tortured him greatly — but he maintained: "I do not know." The king sent for the archbishop [called archiriga] to ask about the story — whether it was possible that the man still had not stolen them. The priest said it was possible he did not know. And the priest said it was foolish of the king to have ruled that the pauper was entitled to the large garment. The king was greatly outraged at the priest for considering him a fool — and wished to do something to him but was unable. And they searched greatly for the theft but did not find anything. The king commanded to announce: whoever had stolen should come and acknowledge it — for certainly nothing would be done to him — as the king desired to know how it was possible to steal these garments. And crowds of people congregated discussing this. The pauper came and asked them: "What are you discussing?" And they informed him. He spoke up and said: "What is the commotion? He who stole will return." And they screamed at him. And so he came again and asked — and they screamed at him: "Beggar — behold you are liable for your life — for they will say you know about the theft." He said: "Yes — I know of the theft." They said: "If you know — go and tell." He said: "I will tell." So the pauper came to the king and said: "I know of the theft." The king said he greatly desired to see the thief. He replied: "I am he." And the king kissed him — and asked: "How did you steal them?" And he told him the whole story — and they sought the thief and returned also the second garment which was by him. The king said to the pauper: "Devise contrivances to ensnare the aforementioned archbishop — for I am upset with him." He said: "So I will do." The pauper commanded to make for him clothing like the archbishop wears when conducting their prayers — and to catch many fish-reptiles [called rukes] — and to give him many candles. And he went and dressed himself in the clothing — and affixed a candle to each reptile — and lit the candles — and let the reptiles run and fly inside the priest's prayer house. And he stood at the place from which things are conducted. And he began to shout — and all gathered there. And the priest also came — and was very frightened — for he saw a flame and a voice calling but did not know what it was. He [the pauper] said to the priest that he had revealed himself to him — for he wished to bring him immediately to paradise. The priest fell on his face — and the pauper said to him that before he could enter paradise he must first go a bit to hell — and afterwards he would bring him to paradise. And he commanded the priest to get into a sack — and he got in. He went and tied him and carried him to the king — and hung him before the king's courtyard and informed him. Everyone went out and saw someone hanging in a sack — and did not know what it was — and began throwing stones at it — and threw so many stones until they hit him beaten and bruised and broke all his teeth. And the priest did not know what this was — if this was the hell he was told about — that he must go to first — or if this was a trick. Afterwards when they had beaten him — the king said to throw him out — and they threw him out and untied the sack — and he left there in great disgrace. [In an alternate version heard: the end was that they took him to be hanged — for the end of a thief is to be hanged. And when they were bringing him — someone [the Accuser] went with a sack of shoes and said to him: "So much effort I toiled — and so many shoes I wore out — until I brought you to this etc."] (The transcriber says: for this is the way of the Accuser — to entice and afterwards to goad, as is brought in Story Tale #8 about the rabbi and his only son etc.) In Siach Sarfey Kodesh (3:99) the alternate version is: when the pauper is told that the king desires to see the thief — "He did want and/or he did not want" — and yet he goes and tells the king the whole story from beginning to end. The royal ministers and judges tell the king: even though you do not hold it against him and pardon him — we demand justice. And they decreed that his punishment was to be hanged. When they were taking him to be hanged — he saw from afar the astrologer carrying a sack full of torn shoes etc. What is brought in the Words of Rabbi Nachman [Sichos HaRan] (item 166): that he said — "With one thing I was successful — and through this I merited to what I merited" — and he said it in this language: Mit ayn zakh iz mir gerotin. And it is not explained there what the thing is. And I heard that he said: for it is brought in the words of the kabbalists that Adam HuRishon [the first man] — when he ate from the Tree of Knowledge — all the souls tasted. But his [Na Nach Nachma Nachman MeUman's] holy soul merited that it did not taste from the Tree of Knowledge whatsoever.

A story that Rebbe Nachman told over. A story of a pauper who supported himself from digging clay to sell. Once he was digging clay — and found in the place that he dug a gem which was worth an absolute fortune — but he did not know its value. So he went to an appraiser who answered that there was no one in this country who could pay its value — and he would need to travel to London, to the imperial city. But he was poor and had no money to travel. So he went and sold everything he had — and went from house to house for donations — until he had enough to travel to the sea. And he wanted to board the ship but had no money. So he went to the captain and showed him the gem — and immediately the captain took him aboard the ship with great honor and said to him: "You are a great certainty." And he gave him a special first-class cabin with all the amenities like a prized magnate. And his cabin had a window into the sea. And he was always delighting and rejoicing his soul with the diamond — and especially at mealtimes — for through joy and an expanded heart it is beneficial and healing — facilitating the digestion of food. One time he sat to eat — and the diamond was resting on the table to be delighted with — and he fell asleep. In the interim the servant came and took the tablecloth and the crumbs — and not knowing about the diamond — threw everything into the sea. And when he awoke from his sleep and understood all this — he had great anguish and almost went out of his mind. And what could he do? The captain is a marauder who would kill him for the price of the trip. Therefore he made himself happy as if he did not know. And the custom of the captain was to speak with him every day for a few hours — and so he came on this day. And he made himself happy to such an extent that the captain recognized no change in him. And the captain said to him: "I know you are wise and of straight heart — and I want to buy a great deal of grain to sell in London — and I can profit handsomely — but I am worried that they should not say I steal from the king's treasury. Therefore the purchase will be in your name — and I will pay you well." This was appealing in his eyes — and they did so. Immediately upon their arrival in London — the captain died — and everything was left with this man — and it was double and quadruple the value of the diamond. And Rebbe Nachman concluded: the diamond was not his — and the proof is that it was lost from him. And the grain was his — and the proof is that it remained with him. Un vus ehr iz gekumen tzu zayn zakh iz nur viel ehr hut zich dehr halten — [And everything that came to his cause was only due to his holding himself up etc.]

A story that our master, leader, and teacher Rabbi Nachman told over — about Kaptzin Pasha. Once by the Turkish King [Sultan] there was a man from our Jewish brethren who was very important in his eyes — more than all the royal ministers he had — and he loved him with very great and strong love. And every single day he would call him to his house to delight in his company. The royal ministers were jealous of him and schemed plots to defame him before the king so that he should eradicate him from the world. And among them there was a pasha called Kaptzin Pasha — whose hatred for this Jew was greater than all the ministers'. But in front of the Jew he presented himself as his friend — and every day he schemed plots desiring to succeed in finding some defamation against him before the king. Once the aforementioned pasha came to the aforementioned Jew — and began to speak to him slyly — and told him how he was by the king — and heard from his mouth how he loves you — "but he suffers from one thing: when you come before him to speak with him he cannot bear the odor of your mouth — for he senses a bad odor wafting from your mouth. But he cannot be without you — and he has great suffering from this. So my advice is: every time you come before the king — hold a kerchief with fragrance in front of your mouth — in order that the king will not sense the bad breath — for the fragrance will dispel the bad odor — so that you do not stink in the eyes of the king." And the aforementioned Jew — due to his temimus [innocence] — believed his words — and resolved in his mind to do so. Afterwards the aforementioned pasha went to the king and told him that he had heard from the aforementioned Jew: that he said he has great suffering — for every time he speaks with the king he senses a bad odor emanating from the king's mouth. "Therefore his resolution is that when he comes to speak with you, my master the king, he will hold a kerchief with fragrance against his mouth — in order not to sense the bad odor from the king's mouth. And this is the sign that my words are true — for tomorrow when he comes to speak with you — you will see with your own eyes that he will hold a kerchief against his mouth." When the king heard this he was very angry — and said: "When I see that your words are true — then I will abolish him from the world." And behold — the aforementioned Jew came on the morrow before the king — and held a kerchief against his mouth as the pasha had advised him — for he believed his words. And when the king saw this — it was clear in his mind that the words of the pasha were true. Immediately he wrote a letter as follows: "When the person who gives over this note comes before you — throw him immediately into the incinerator where all those sentenced for execution are burned there." And the king sealed the letter with his seal — and said to this man: "I request that you personally deliver this letter to the man written in the address — which is in such-and-such a place." And the aforementioned Jew took the letter — and promised the king he would do as he said — and did not know what was written in it — and went to his home. Now this Jewish man was avidly active in the mitzvah to circumcise Jewish children — and whenever they would honor him with the mitzvah of the cutting he would not pay attention to any hindrance — for the mitzvah was very precious in his eyes. And then — on that very day that he needed to travel to deliver the king's letter — Hashem, Who desired to save His trusted friend, brought about that someone came from a town and honored him to travel with him to the town and circumcise his son. And because his practice was not to leave this mitzvah for any reason — he began to deliberate: "What shall I do for the king's command — in the matter of his letter?" And Hashem brought about that the aforementioned pasha came before him. And he told over to the pasha: the king had given him a letter to deliver — and today Hashem had presented him with the mitzvah of cutting — and his practice was not to leave this mitzvah for any reason. "Therefore I am requesting from you that you take the letter and bring it there." Now the aforementioned pasha was very happy — for now he could slander him further before the king — that he had not carried out the king's desire with the letter. And the pasha took the letter from his hand and delivered it to the person it was being sent to — and this was the executioner appointed to burn those the king had sentenced to death. And immediately he grabbed the aforementioned pasha and threw him into the furnace — and he was burned — as he deserved to be punished by Hashem — measure for measure. Now the Jew did not know anything of what had been done to him. On the morrow he returned and came before the king. When the king saw him he was very puzzled and said to him: "Have you still not delivered the letter that I put in your hands for that aforementioned man?" He answered: "My master the king — the letter I gave over to Kaptzin Pasha to deliver — for Hashem had presented me with the mitzvah of cutting — and my practice is not to leave this mitzvah." The king then understood: is it not a phenomenon that this pasha who had slandered him should be burned? So the king immediately asked the man: "What is this — that you hold a kerchief with fragrance against your mouth when you speak with me?" He answered that the pasha had given him this remedy — "for he told me that he heard from you that you cannot bear the bad breath from my mouth." The king then told over to him how the pasha had slandered him — "that you said to him you could not bear the bad breath from my mouth — and therefore you would hold a kerchief so as not to sense the bad odor from my mouth." And the king told over what was written in the letter he had given him. And he said: "Now I know that Hashem is the ruler of the land Who saves His cherished from all evil. And to the aforementioned pasha — just as he schemed to do to you — so was done to him — and Hashem returned unto him retribution upon his head." And from then on his importance in the eyes of the king was greater than all the ministers — and he was very, very important and precious in his eyes.

A story of rain — regarding the matter that Hashem, may He be blessed, will conquer the battle only with the simple — those who recite Psalms with simplicity etc. — and not with those who go with wisdoms. Rebbe Nachman told over a parable of a king who went hunting — and set out dressed as a commoner so as to facilitate the amusement. In the middle — suddenly heavy rain fell — literally a flood of water. All of the ministers scattered one by one etc. — and the king was in dire danger — and he searched until he found a cottage. And there was a villager there — and he took the king in and dressed him — and gave him his food: groats [barley soup] etc. — and heated the oven and let the king sleep on its threshold. It was so sweet and pleasant for the king that he had never tasted such a taste of pleasantness — since he had been so tired and exhausted etc. The royal ministers searched for the king until they came there and saw that he was sleeping. They wanted the king to return home with them — but he told them: "Since you did not save me — rather everyone scattered to save himself — whereas this man saved me — and here I tasted such sweetness — therefore he will bring me in his wagon — with these clothes — and he will seat me on the royal throne." Rebbe Nachman concluded this: it is brought down that at the heels of the Messiah [ikevos Meshicha] there will be a flood — they will shoot with heresy — not of water — but of foreign improper thoughts. And they will cover all the towering mountains. Even in the Land of Israel — where the flood did not reach — just due to the force of their projection the waters streamed there. That is: it will splash in even into the kosher hearts. And with wisdoms no remedy will be able to be given. And all the royal ministers will scatter — and all the royalty will not hold up — vet zikh nit der haltin nor [will not hold up — only] — the simple Jews who recite Psalms with simplicity etc. Therefore when the Messiah comes — they will place the royal crown on his head.

A parable of "who is here?" that Rebbe Nachman told over. That a man once traveled with a wagon driver — to Berlin or some other large city. The man went to attend to his needs — and the coachman — whose name was Ivan [a coarse, insensitive type] — was left with the wagon in the middle of the market. A policeman [soldier] came over to him and asked him why he was stationed there — and said to him: Ver-da? ["Who is here?"] And Ivan — thinking that the policeman was asking his name — said to him: "Ivan." And he struck him and said: Ver-da?! And he yelled: "Ivan!" And he strikes him and screams: Ver-da?! — until he took him with the wagon to a side street. When the man returned — he searched for him until he found him — and said to him: "Ivan etc." He replied in a whisper and with fear: "Do not say Ivan — just: Ver-da." After he left the city — Ivan said to him: "Now you can call me Ivan." There he was called Ver-da ["who is here?"] — and there he was called Ivan [coarse and insensitive]. Rebbe Nachman concluded: Ba mir iz ver-da — un ven men geyt aroys fun mir iz vider Ivun. [By me it is "ver-da" — that is, "who is he?" — that he knows his lowliness; and also his body [the Ivan] is refined and is called in the aspect of "who" and "what" — "ver-da" ["who is here?"]. And when they leave me — it continues to be Ivan — the material body is materialistic.]

A story of bitter herbs that Rebbe Nachman told over. Once a Jew and a German went wandering about together. And the Jew taught the German to make himself out to be like a Jew [since the Yiddish and German languages are similar] — and the Jews are compassionate and will have mercy on him. And since Pesach was approaching — he taught him how to conduct himself throughout the whole seder [when the homeowner invites him to the house] — that kiddush is made — the washing of the hands — only he forgot to tell him about the eating of bitter herbs [maror]. When he came to the seder he was famished from the whole day — and anticipated eating all the good things the Jew had told him. But they give him a piece of karpas [celery] in salt water — and the other customary seder items — and they recite the Haggadah. And he was already looking expectantly for the eating — and was happy that they are already eating the matzah. Suddenly they give him maror [bitter herbs] — and his mouth became pungent — and he thought that this was the feast — that this alone was what they would eat. He immediately fled — with bitterness and hunger — and thought to himself: "Cursed Jews! After the whole ceremony — this is what they give to eat." And he came to the study house and slept. Afterwards the Jew came with joyous countenance — satiated from eating and drinking — and asked him: "How was the seder for you?" He told him angrily. He said to him: "Hoy German fool! If you had waited a bit more — you would have eaten sumptuously like me." The same is true in the matter of Rebbe Nachman [and the service of Hashem]: that after all the exertion and toil until coming — drawing close to Rebbe Nachman or to the devotion of Hashem — to purify the body — a bit of maror — bitterness — is given. For the purification of the body comes with bitterness. But the person thinks that it will always be just the bitterness — only this is all there is — just the bitterness etc. — therefore he immediately flees. However when he waits a bit and endures this small bitterness of the purification of the body — then he feels afterwards all manner of vitality and delight. [And these parables — one can learn counsel from them for all matters of the service of Hashem.] This holds true in this matter of the service of Hashem — that first comes the bitterness of the refinement of the body — but afterwards one feels the vitality etc. See also Midrash Rabbah, Bereishis 66:4: "Tzadikim — their beginning is suffering and their end is harmony. And the evildoers have the opposite."

A story he told of the treasure that is under the bridge. That once there was a man from a certain city who dreamt that in Vienna — under the bridge — there is a treasure. Therefore he traveled there and stood by the bridge and sought out a contrivance — what to do. For in the day he was unable due to the people. And a soldier passed by there and said to him: "What are you standing and contemplating?" He thought in his mind that it would be good to tell him — in order that he would help him and they would divide it between them. He told him the whole matter. The soldier spoke up and said to him: "Ay — a Jew gives consideration to a dream? In that case — I also dreamt that in such and such a place — by such and such a person" — and he mentioned the city of the man and the name of this man — "in the closet there is a treasure — will I travel there?" So the man traveled to his house and dug in his closet — and found the treasure. And he said afterwards: "Now I know: the treasure is by me — but in order for me to know of the treasure — it was necessary to travel to Vienna." So it is in the matter of serving Hashem: the treasure is by each one by himself — but in order to know of the treasure — one must travel to the Tzadik.

The parable about the turkey. Once a prince fell into a psychosis that he was a bird called a turkey — and it was required of him to sit naked underneath the table and drag bits of bread and bones like a turkey. All the doctors despaired of helping him and healing him from this — and the king was extremely distressed. Until a sage came along and said: "I take upon myself to heal him!" He too undressed himself naked — and sat underneath the table next to the aforementioned prince — and also dragged crumbs and bones. The prince asked him: "Who are you and what are you doing here?" He answered: "And what are you doing here?" He said: "I'm a turkey." He said: "I'm also a turkey." The two of them sat together like that for some time — until they became familiar with each other. Then the sage signaled — and they threw them a shirt. The sage-turkey said to the prince: "You think a turkey cannot go with a shirt? It is possible to wear a shirt and even still be a turkey!" So they both put on a shirt. After some time he signaled — and they threw them pants. And he said to him again as before: "You think that with pants it is not possible to be a turkey etc." — and they donned pants. And so with the other clothing. Afterwards he signaled — and they threw them human food from the table — and he said: "You think that if one eats good foods one is no longer a turkey?" — Men ken esn un oykh zayn hindik. [One can eat and still be a turkey.] And they ate. Afterwards he said: "You think that a turkey must specifically be under the table? It is possible to be a turkey and be by the table." And so he dealt with him until he healed him completely. There is a version with the following addition: "And this is the aspect of what our Sages ob"m said on the verse [Kings I 5:11]: 'And he became more wise than all mankind' — even from the fools." The referent is understandable to those with understanding.

(The transcriber says: It is possible to say that a person who desires to draw close to the service of Hashem — behold he is a turkey dressed in materialism etc. And in this fashion it is possible — little by little — to draw himself close to the service of Hashem — until one enters completely. And so with the outreach to people in this fashion. And this is sufficient for the wise.)

The parable about grain. Once a king said to his dear friend the second-to-the-king: "Being that I am an astrologer — I see that all the grain that will grow this year — whoever eats from it will become crazy. Taking this into consideration — devise a plan." And he replied that they should therefore prepare grain for themselves — so that they would not need to eat from the aforementioned grain. The king replied: "If so — when we alone will not be crazy — and the whole world will be crazy — then it will be the opposite — we will be the crazy ones. And to prepare for everyone is impossible. Therefore certainly we will also have to eat from the grain — just this: that we will make a sign on our foreheads — so that at least we will know that we are crazy. For if I will look at your forehead — and so when you look at my forehead — we will know from the sign that we are crazy." Alternate Version — the King Refuses the Grain (Siach Sarfey Kodesh 2:271) There is another version to this story (Siach Sarfey Kodesh 2:271), that it was the second to the king who suggested that they would have to eat from the tainted grain, but the king vehemently rejected this, saying that just because the whole world was crazy, they do not, and should not be crazy. And if they would appear to be crazy to the rest of the world, so what. That is no reason to eat the grain that makes people crazy. So they would prepare grain for themselves. This version of the story is presented with the referent that so it is with the service of Hashem, that just because the world is crazy, caught up in the empty pursuits and vanities of this world, one must be strong to engage only in Torah, mitzvos, and good deeds, even if he will appear to be crazy to the rest of the world. A citation is also given to the Talmud (Sanhedrin 97a) which based on the verse in Isaiah (59:15) says that a person who wants to distance himself from evil, will appear crazy. In Sefer Hamidos (The Aleph Bet Book; Truth item #31) Rabbi Nachman says: One who wants to turn away from evil, and sees that there is no truth in the world, makes himself as a fool. Source: NaNach, “Stories and Parables of Rabbi Nachman of Breslov” — http://naanaach.blogspot.com/p/stories-and-parables-of-rabbi-nachman.html

The parable about a king who chased after a deer but was unable to catch it — and the royal ministers stood and said: "Our master the king — let us return etc." The king spoke up and said: "I must hunt down the deer — and whoever wants to return — let him return."

Another story Rebbe Nachman told over. There was a king who was practicing astrology — and he saw that if they did not harvest the grain that year by a certain time — all the grain would spoil etc. etc. And the time was short. He resolved to take harvesters and give them all amenities and all their needs — so that they would have expanded consciousness to work by day and by night — and finish the harvest before the aforementioned deadline. And they — on the contrary — enjoyed the pleasures and forgot. And the aforementioned deadline passed — and they did not harvest the grain — and all the grain spoiled. They did not know what to do so that the king would not be angry at them. A sage advised them: how the king loves a certain bird — and by bringing him this bird — through the pleasure [nachas ruach] and delight from this — it will atone for everything. But it is very difficult to obtain the bird — for it is in a place high up in the air — and they have no ladder — and time is short. And the sage advised them: since they were many people — they should position themselves one upon his fellow — higher and higher — until they would reach the bird. But they fought with each other — because each one wanted to be above and his friend beneath him. And through their fighting they were negligent — and the bird flew away — and thus they were left to the anger of the king on account of their negligence in harvesting the grain as mentioned.

The import is: that Hashem, may He be blessed, created man and gave him all delights and everything — so that they would harvest the grain before it would spoil — with the infringement of the covenant [sexual immorality] — and to serve Hashem etc. with a clean mind. But he was negligent through the pleasures — until he stumbled with the grain that was already spoiled — and the mind was marred, Heaven save us. But there was still the recourse through the bird — which is the Tzadik — through which everything would have been atoned. But through the strife and jealousy — that everyone desires to be above — through this they are distant and do not bond to the Tzadik etc. And this is sufficient for the wise.

Found in a hidden manuscript is the following story regarding the Book of Eylim [Eylim is a place mentioned in the Torah, e.g. Exodus 15:27] — and it is a very precious book authored by a G-dly man — Rabbi Yosef of Kandia ob"m.

In his days — five hundred students outstanding in Torah gathered — and they began to study books of philosophy and the Guide for the Perplexed — until they became wanton and heretical in the Living G-d — and said that the world etc. — and that there is no Divine supervision over the world, Heaven forbid. And all the aforementioned students came to the Tzadik Rabbi Yosef of Kandia ob"m — so that he too would approve with them on this evil theme. And the aforementioned Tzadik — when he heard this matter — was seized with dread. And they began to present proofs and debate with him — and he was unable to bring them around from this matter. And he spoke up and said to them: "Give me some time and I will answer you." And they gave him some time and went away. And the aforementioned Tzadik sent letters to all the great rabbis — that they should come to him quickly. And they came. And he told them the aforementioned matter — and they all prayed to Hashem — and they fasted night and day. And also the aforementioned Tzadik fell on his face for three days and three nights — not eating bread and not drinking water. After the three days he got up quickly from the ground and said: "A time to act for Hashem — they have nullified Your Torah" [Psalms 119:126]. And he took a scribe's pen in his hand and wrote without rest — he did not eat and did not drink — did not study and did not pray — only wrote with a scribe's pen. And he composed the aforementioned book which is called the Book of Eylim. Afterwards when all the students came to him — he took the aforementioned book and put it in their hands. And with this book he defeated them [for all the wisdoms are there — and they saw his wisdom — and even still he is a believer — so it seems to me]. And they all became complete Tzadikim.

The Maharsha ob"m [Rabbi Shmuel Eidels] was the Rav in a certain community — and he sat and learned with his yeshiva the entire day. There was a rav of the province who had jurisdiction over the Maharsha — and all the rabbis of the communities associated to that provincial rav were obligated to come before the provincial rav to greet him and receive ordinance from him — as was customary in the previous generations. And so it was — all the rabbis of all the communities came to greet the provincial rav. And the rav the Maharsha ob"m did not come to him — he just sat and learned continuously. And the provincial rav judged him favorably — saying: "Perhaps because he is busy reading the holy texts he did not come to the royal table." And the provincial rav traveled to him — to the place where the holy rav the Maharsha ob"m abided. And he came to the city — and the whole city hurried toward him as customary — and all came to greet him. And the rav the Maharsha ob"m did not desire to go out to him. And again the provincial rav judged him favorably — accounting this to the cessation of Torah — that he does not want to abstain from his learning. And the provincial rav said: "I will go to him." So the provincial rav went to the synagogue where the rav the Maharsha ob"m sat with his students. And the rav the Maharsha did not budge from his place — did not pause from his learning — and did not give him shalom at all. Even still he again judged him favorably — and said: "Perhaps this also is because he does not wish to stop his mouth from reading the holy Torah." In the interim a handsome youth came to the synagogue — and immediately the Maharsha hurried toward him — rose fully erect before him — accorded him honor — and spoke with him a great deal. Then the provincial rav was fuming at the Maharsha ob"m — and was very angry and denigrated him — and said: "At first when you did not come to me to my place — I judged you favorably and accounted that to the cessation of Torah it would entail. Afterwards when I came to your place and you did not come to me — I also judged you favorably — and accounted this as well to the cessation of Torah involved. Afterwards when I came to the synagogue and you did not give me shalom — I also judged you favorably — and accounted this as well to the cessation of Torah — that you do not want to pause from the Torah whatsoever. Now I see that it is falsehood — for behold the youth you accorded honor and spoke with him a great deal in the middle of your learning." And he was furious with him. And the Maharsha said: "Let it be a sign and a presage that this youth will be killed in two hours." And the rav did not want to believe — and he took the aforementioned youth and went with him here and there — and spoke with him a very great deal — so as not to leave him out of sight until the two hours passed — in order to refute the words of the Maharsha ob"m. And it came to be while they traversed the city — a lord of some sort went and passed by them — and was pressing on his firearm innocently to shoot some bird or the like as is their way — and he hit the aforementioned youth — immediately after two hours like the words of the Maharsha ob"m — nothing was unfulfilled. And the aforementioned provincial rav ran and came to the Maharsha ob"m — and the Maharsha ob"m said that soon they would bring here someone who was killed. In the middle of their talking — it was heard immediately that they had brought some casualty to the city. Then the aforementioned provincial rav was confounded — and asked the Maharsha: "What is this?" Then the Maharsha told him and revealed to him the entire matter. "Being that this youth was a reincarnation of Achav King of Israel — therefore I accorded him so much honor. And because Achav King of Israel was killed — this youth was compelled to be killed as well. So as soon as this youth came out into the world — immediately a destroying entity was created in order to kill that aforementioned youth — and it stood in that place near this city — and anticipated the arrival of the time of this aforementioned youth so that he would be killed by it. And because you held him back as mentioned until he was killed here by the aforementioned lord — through this it was necessary to give that destroying entity a different man in his place. And this is the casualty that was killed by its hand. Therefore you must accept upon yourself repentance — for by your hand this casualty was killed — because you brought this about through the delay with which you held back the youth here." Then the provincial rav fell before the feet of the Maharsha and appeased him — and pleaded before him to forgive him — and requested that he give him penance. And the Maharsha said to him: "Your penance is that you should remove your hand from the crown of the rabbinate and become a wagon driver." And he accepted this upon himself — and became a wagon driver. "And the word of our G-d will stand forever" [Isaiah 40:8].

A second story about the Maharsha ob"m. In Austria — the place of the Maharsha — the gentiles had an impurity [a church]. When the Jews needed to go with a dead person by way of this place [for they had no alternate route] — the priests would ring etc. — and whoever went that way would become an apostate, may the Merciful One save us. And the Maharsha ob"m commanded: when he passes away from this world and they carry him that way — they should place upon him the composition "Maharsha" which he composed. And they did so. And all the priests gathered there and began to ring. And they stood his bed stationary — and the Maharsha ob"m sat himself up — and began to leaf through the pages. And the impurity with the people began to be swallowed into the earth — and they were all swallowed into the earth. And until today there is a sign of this that they were swallowed into the earth.

A third story about the Maharsha ob"m. When they built the synagogue in Austria and needed a great deal of money — they made the setting of the cornerstone with a large assembly — and announced the sale of the setting of the cornerstone. Until a wealthy man bought it for a sack full of gold coins. Afterwards he honored the Maharsha ob"m to set the stone. The Maharsha said to him: "In return for this — request something of me." And he requested to have a son like the Maharsha. The Maharsha answered that this was very difficult — and he should ask for something else. And the man was obstinate for this specific thing. So the Maharsha said: "If so — when your wife gets pregnant you will die — and when she gives birth she will die as well — and I will receive the child and raise him by me." And they agreed on this. And so it was. And he grew up by the Maharsha ob"m. And he was hidden — they did not see any greatness in him. And before the Maharsha passed away — he commanded that he should fill his position. And so it was. And this rav never went to any funeral of the city's dignitaries — and this was troubling in the eyes of the congregation — and they censured him on this. And he told the attendant to call him when there would be a funeral for a head of the congregation. And so it was — and the rav went out — and he spread a cloth over the bed — and everyone saw how the avenging angels snatched the dead man from the bed etc. And he said to them: "If this is the case with your dignitaries — how do you expect me to attend their funeral?" And from then on they recognized his greatness — that he was worthy to be in the place of the Maharsha ob"m.

The story Rebbe Nachman told over: in the times of the Baal Shem Tov ob"m there was a musician [klezmer] who was blind — and he would play at weddings — and this was his livelihood. After he passed away — it became known that he was not blind at all — and had good eyes. Only — in order not to look at women — he had made himself his whole life as if he were blind. And the whole world thought he was blind. In addition — there was a very wealthy man who was a big miser who did not give even a piece of bread for charity — and because of this he was disdained in everyone's eyes. And there was a huge philanthropist then who sustained all the poor — with food and drink and all their needs etc. Now when the aforementioned rich man — whom everyone disdained because of his stinginess — passed away: the next day when all the poor people went to the aforementioned philanthropist for sustenance — he answered them that now he did not have what to give them. For all that he had given them the whole time was from the rich miser who had died. He did not want to take pleasure from the honor they would give him for his benevolent heart — and so that the mitzvah would be pure without any ulterior motives — therefore he would give the charity to this man to distribute. And everyone had considered the miser a big miser. And now that he died — there was no one to give. And then everyone knew his greatness. The Baal Shem Tov ob"m said that both of them — the aforementioned blind musician and this rich miser — both of them are on the same level [see Isaiah 42:19]. They merited to what they merited — praiseworthy are they!

The story that Rebbe Nachman told about the tende and rende [vestments of a priest]. Once there was a rav who went collecting donations [for redeeming captives or for the marriage of an orphan bride] — and he needed some hundreds of adumim. He approached a rich man and solicited him. The rich man told him that he has a tende and rende [vestments of a priest] — and if he would wear it and traverse all the streets of the city dressed like that — then he will give him all the money he needs for the aforementioned charity. And he agreed to this and did so — and took from him the money needed for the charity. Afterwards he requested from the rich man that he give him as a present the aforementioned vestments — and he gave them. Before the rav passed away — he left a will that from these vestments they should make the shrouds for him. And they did this for him — and a small portion of the foot was left which these vestments did not suffice — and they made that piece from something else. After many years — there was a cause that forced them to clear out his grave. And they found that the whole body was complete — not having been attacked by maggots — except for the small portion of the foot which was not dressed from the tende and rende. Transcriber's note: This story was told by one of our fellowship — our teacher the Rav R. Pinchas Kiblezer — in the name of our master z"l. And R. Avrohom z"l said: although he had not heard this from his father the Rav R. Nachman of Tulchin z"l — yet since R. Pinchas z"l told it — this is truth.

Parables from Rabbi Avraham, of blessed memory, concerning the folly of this world’s vanities and the ultimate purpose: A man had been sentenced, and his sentence had already been handed over to be carried out. The man was delivered to those charged with carrying it out, and they seated him in a horse-drawn wagon together with the executioner who would carry out the sentence. The condemned man knows that there is now no means of escape or refuge by which to be saved from the sentence, and he sees how the wagon with the horses keeps moving, drawing nearer to the place of hanging. They do not stop for the blink of an eye; they do not stop even for a single moment, and with every step he draws nearer to the place of execution. The only thing he does not know is how long the journey to the place of execution will take—whether a year, a day, an hour, and so forth—but he sees that he is certainly drawing ever nearer. If he were to see some comedy (a humorous performance), he would certainly pay no attention to it. So it is with every person: everyone knows that, in the end, he must die. The two horses are day and night, which run, race, and fly, and do not stop for the blink of an eye. His only consolation is that he does not know whether his day is near or whether he still has longer to live. In any event, he keeps drawing nearer. Therefore, he must certainly keep in mind the need to prepare provisions for the journey, and not let comedies and the follies of desire confuse him into forgetting to prepare himself with provisions for the journey. The true man, the tzaddik, sees and looks upon the people of the world, who are clothed in materiality and corporeality, and in this they spend their time and toil. It is like, for example, people who were sentenced and placed in a deep pit surrounded by partitions, unable to look out upon the broad and beautiful world. The food given to them is whatever comes through the sewer channel, in the wastewater that flows outside the city from the refuse of the king’s palace. They search there and find small pieces of meat, kishkelikh (intestines), and the like. One finds a larger piece, and another envies him because he found a smaller piece and is dejected over the fact that the other has a large piece. The tzaddik looks upon them with compassion because of how degraded they are in this, while they think that nothing could be better than this; they neither see nor taste the goodness found in the king’s palace. The tzaddik seeks counsel for how to take a person out of this and give him a taste of the goodness of the Eden of delights that exists and that one can attain in this world. Concerning the danger of this world: It is like, for example, standing in a war and seeing, time after time, yet another man beside him fall from the arrows, until the arrows are literally right beside him, and no one knows how to save himself. He is truly unable to hold the sword and fight because of fear and discouragement. At such a time, the soldiers strengthen one another not to fall, and each strengthens himself to defend himself—not to give in to the enemy and allow him to attain his aim completely. So too, one must awaken to the danger in this world, for time after time the Baal Davar seizes people, and so forth and so forth, until they fall. There is no counsel other than at least to hold oneself firm and defend oneself, not to let one’s hands and feet go slack, but to grasp weapons and fight him, and not surrender oneself beneath the enemy who wishes to cut a person off from both worlds, God forbid. Rather, one must hold out against him and escape from him to whatever extent one can. The transcriber said: I heard from members of our fellowship, who heard from Rabbi Avraham, of blessed memory, in the name of Moharnat, of blessed memory, that he was asked concerning the Redemption: How could it be that in the time of the earlier generations—as in the generation of our holy Rebbe—the Redemption did not come, yet in the later generations, which descend lower and lower, the Redemption will come? He explained this by means of a parable. There was a great metropolis in the world, surrounded by an extraordinarily fortified and mighty wall. All the kings wanted to conquer it and expended all their strength, but their hope remained unfulfilled, for all their soldiers fell from the arrows shot from there. Afterward, there was a very wise king who walked around the wall and examined it. It seemed to him that he should now take all the mighty warriors from his armies and have them strike the wall until he conquered it. He did so, and all his armies fell, leaving only him alone. He walked around the wall to see what he had accomplished there, and in his wisdom he saw that now—since the entire wall had already been shaken inwardly, although this was not discernible from the outside—he could conquer it even with the elderly, the sick, and children. He did so: he gathered all who remained to him—women, children, and the sick—went forth, conquered the wall, and utterly demolished it. Now, who conquered the wall? If it was the weak ones who came last—why, even if they labored with all their strength for a thousand thousands of years, they would not have made even an impression. It was only the strength of the first mighty warriors who shook the wall to the point of collapse. Yet if it was the first ones—why, they did not conquer it; only the last ones finished the task and conquered it. So it is concerning the Redemption. The first ones—the true tzaddikim and their followers, such as Moshe Rabbeinu, peace be upon him; Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, peace be upon him; the holy Arizal; the holy Baal Shem Tov; our holy Rebbe; and the other tzaddikim—shot arrows at the Serpent, at the Sitra Achra, at the Samekh-Mem and his faction. They have already shaken the Sitra Achra so greatly that whoever may arise from the later generations will be able to conquer the Sitra Achra and complete the birur, so that the Redemption will come.

And indeed this parable is very useful for the service of Hashem in every manner — in strengthening oneself for the service of Hashem — for prayer and hisbodedus — and in the matter of breaking desires and traits — that even though it has been many years and he has done what he has done — and it seems to him that he has still accomplished nothing — even so: let him strengthen and strengthen himself to do his part until he finishes. And so in the matter of derech eretz — as our Sages z"l said: "Three things require strengthening" etc. And sufficient is this for the wise — for the parable mentioned is for all matters.

Said the transcriber: I heard from the Rav the Gaon Rabbi Mordechai — teacher of righteousness of the holy community of Saklav — who heard from the author Rabbi Avrohom z"l — regarding the question of the redemption mentioned above: that we see every generation deteriorating in Torah and service and fear of Heaven — and how will the redemption come in their days — when it did not come in the earlier generations who were awesome Tzadikim who truly served Hashem? And he answered z"l in this language: for it is seemingly difficult [to understand] the words of our Sages z"l in tractate Sotah chapter 9: "Since the Temple was destroyed — the sages became ashamed etc. — on whom shall we rely? — on our Father in Heaven." "Since the Temple was destroyed etc. the wise ones ceased etc. — on whom to rely etc. etc." "In the footsteps of Mashiach etc. — on whom shall we rely? — on our Father in Heaven." And what are they informing us with this [for the way is to inform us of the counsel — and what counsel is this]? For we also know that there is no one to rely upon etc. But the matter is thus: there is an awakening from above — from Hashem Himself — through His mercy. And there is an awakening from below — from our service — through Torah and fear of Heaven etc. And truly we [flesh and blood] go downward every time — and every generation is worse than the previous generation. But Hashem, may He be blessed, goes in greatness every time — for this is the essence of His greatness [for greatness is chesed — lovingkindness — as brought in the words of our Rabbis z"l]. And as it is brought in the Sichos [conversations]: that Hashem manages the world ever more beautifully [shener]. Therefore these Mishnayos relate how the generations go on diminishing through our many sins. But the counsel regarding this matter — the awakening from above [Hashem's mercy grows — and particularly on the contrary — the worse the generation — the greater the mercy etc. — and sufficient is this for the wise] — concludes: "On whom shall we rely?" [Since our awakening from below diminishes] — "on our Father in Heaven" [on the awakening from above — His mercy, may He be blessed — which grows — and the worse and more sick — the greater the mercy upon him]. And just as a parable: Hashem saw the mercy upon the world in the days of the Generation of the Flood — and sent them Noach. And afterwards He sent our Father Avraham etc. And in Egypt — when they were at the lowest level — in the forty-ninth gate of impurity — His mercy blazed up — and He sent them the faithful shepherd Moses our teacher peace be upon him — to redeem them. And so afterwards — with the destruction of the First Temple — His mercy blazed up and He sent them Ezra the Scribe — who would have been worthy etc. had Moses not preceded him. And with the destruction of the Second Temple — which is harder for us — He set up for us the holy luminary "Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai," may his merit protect us, Amen etc. And afterwards began the spark of Mashiach — the holy Arizal, may his merit protect us, Amen. And afterwards His mercy blazed up upon the generations that go on diminishing — and He set up the holy Baal Shem Tov and the fellowship. And afterwards — when the hearts went further diminished — in the days of our master — when the light of the Baal Shem Tov began to set — Hashem's mercy blazed up greatly — and He sent our holy master — who has already prepared [the way] until Mashiach our righteous one. And indeed — when the generations will be very bad and very low — His mercy will blaze up very greatly — and He will send us Mashiach our righteous one himself — and it will be a complete redemption speedily in our days, Amen.

And indeed this is a wondrous matter for strengthening oneself for the personal redemption of the person himself — for the redemption of his soul [and likewise for the redemption of his body and his material welfare]. That a person sees that he goes downward every time — he should know and believe that in everything he does to draw himself close to Hashem — and he sees G-d forbid no benefit — and on the contrary etc. — then Hashem's mercy upon him grows more and more. Until indeed sometimes — when the person is at the very lowest rung — the mercy is so great that the beginning of the thought and the end of the action are bound one to the other. And this is the matter of midnight — and the matter of the moon when it is in its diminishment — when there is no greater diminishment — precisely then it is reborn anew. And so a seed — when it rots in the earth — precisely then it sprouts and flowers. (See Likutay Halachos Orach Chayyim Halachah 1 — and sufficient is this for the wise.)

An interpretation of “He keeps truth forever” through a parable from Moharnat, of blessed memory: Moharnat related how, when controversy intensified, falsehood grew very strong and prospered, while truth was cast so far down to the earth that it was almost impossible to believe it existed. Scripture itself testifies to this: “And it cast truth to the ground” (Daniel 8:12). All this arose within him one morning before prayer, until because of it he was unable to pray as one ought. He nevertheless began to pray in this state of constricted consciousness and reached Pesukei DeZimra, but had nearly despaired that this prayer would ever attain expanded consciousness. Yet when he reached the verse “He keeps truth forever” (Psalms 146:6), he suddenly merited a flash of illumination, an elevation of consciousness, and joy in his heart. He explained the verse to himself through a parable. A certain duke had a magnificent garden in which every kind of plant in the world could be found and grew, except for one species. Many years passed without its being found in that garden because it was exceedingly rare. Eventually the time came when he obtained one seed of that species, and he planted it in his garden. Because this seed was singular, special, and distinguished in his garden, precisely such a seed was in the greatest danger until it could be seen growing. This was both because everything required for its growth had to be prepared at exactly the time it needed it, in a precise measure—no less and no more—and because birds lie in wait for seeds. Therefore, he appointed special guards over this seed in scheduled shifts, to watch it constantly with a vigilant eye and never look away from it even for a single moment. So too with truth: it is exceedingly rare, cast to the ground, and undergoes whatever it undergoes. But there is no need to fear for truth. The One who casts truth to earth is Himself “the Keeper of truth forever.” His eyes are always upon it, until “truth shall sprout from the earth” (Psalms 85:12), grow, flourish, and bear fruit, and “the lip of truth shall be established forever” (Proverbs 12:19). After this, his prayer became the prayer of tzaddikim—with rejoicing, song, gladness, and joy. A man once complained before Moharnat, of blessed memory, about his service of God. Moharnat comforted him, saying in Yiddish: “Look at me: I am already a Jew with a gray beard, and I still yearn to become a worthy Jew.” He also said: “In one’s youth, one must labor greatly so that in old age one may at least become a simple, worthy Jew.”